The folks in the US media are doing it again with their “shock” and “dismay” of the use of 2 girls to sing and lip sync a solo performance at the Olympic opening ceremonies.
The Chinese, want a perfect show, decided that the best singer was not as “visually perfect”, that is pretty/cute enough to appear on TV. They decided to use a 2nd girl to lip sync while the first girl sang.
While this is offensive to all of us who aren’t pretty and i count myself one of them, it isn’t that surprising. This has been done in hollywood musicals for years. so the media outrage at this unthinkable behavior is either based on ignorance of the entertainment industry or outright decite.
Why not put the spin this way: 2 girls got to share a moment where they performed for, literally billions for people around the world, rather than just one?
Hat’s off to NBC’s Andrea Joyce for the digusting interview of the US Olympic Women’s Gymnastics Team and in particular the 1 on 1 interview with Alicia Sacramone.
How appropriate to continually asked her how it felt about….
1 what went thru your head when you made this mistake?
2. how did you feel when you realized your mistake cost your teamates a gold medal?
3. it seems like your mistake rattled your teamates, what did you say to them after you came back from the balance beam, where you fell?
4. How did you prepare for the floor excercises, that you made 2 errors on?
5. What was your the feeling about being the captain of the team and …..
these are not exact quotes, but they might as well be.
I spent the last few days chatting with a business associate about psychology and human development. My first bachelor’s degree is in Pyschology. Those discussions and some recent stories i’ve read about treating earthquake victims in china and helping people in trauma (physical, emotional/mental). Current thinking seems to be: the most effective way to overcome come the emotional trauma is ask what they need (within reason) not to ask them to replay the event and discuss its implications. Replaying the bad times often results in a reinfliction of pain.
While Andrea Joyce’s job isn’t to be trauma counselor, she could have let Scaramone just talk about her feelings and experiences. Instead Joyce work hard to seem like mike wallace interviewing some tin horn dictator.
Gold Medal for the Most offensive interview: NBC and Andrea Joyce. Contrast that with the way Meridith Viero asked the same questions on the Today show this next morning.
I’m happy to read that their is finally some action in Washington and the various state legislature across the US to deal with this outbreak of businesses operating as Non-Profits claiming that the purchase of their products are “donations”. Nothing could be farther from the truth. This fake charity issue is something i face each day as the CEO of an Offset company. There are a number of my competitors who sell the same services as I do, complete with branding, but their business is organized as a non-profit claiming to be a charity. It’s not true in many cases, rather the Non-Profit is a vehicle to enrich the staff of the non-profit, by offering their clients a tax deduction for the purchase of a product is not in anyway charitable.
Fortunately i’m not just a lone voice in the woods, various governments are starting to look into these businesses to put a halt to what are essentally a tax scam against the government and a confidence scam agains Offset clients. How many people bought an offset from a non-profit that was from the Chicago Climate exchange? Most offer that, so do we www.4offsets.com, nothing wrong with that, except that offset, in most cases, was bought from a commericial business. How is this in anyway a charitable contribution? Say the XYZgreen.org sells 1 ton of offsets for $10, that they bought for $6. What happens to the $4? In some cases i’ve looked into, it goes to pay the staff and not 1 dime is used for charitable works In a charity, it is used for charitable works, giving things to community whether money or knowledge.
Join me in the fight agains this abuse of the non-profit system and is a being used to scam million of Americans into believing someone’s source of wealth is really a charity. Don’t get scammed!
Ask for details of the non-profit’s charitable works and ask for IRS filings
Is the board of directors controlled by people who work at the foundation?
Where is the outside oversite?
The signs promoting breakfast throughout the Novotel in downtown Toronto, on The Esplanade, advertised the Best Breads in The City. Well after eating dinner and breakfast there, their bread may not be the best in the City might be wrong, but i’m willing to accept the supposition that it is.
For all you Englishman, Scots and Welch, who are spending pounds. If you want a cup of coffee to go it won’t cost a pound, but feel free to add a croissant to spend your whole pound. That’s right $1 for a coffee, $2 for coffee and croissant, about 50p and £1 respectively.
OK, first of all, I get to be a Grateful Dead fan, no matter what you uptight Wall Street guys may think. If Roger McNamee (the link is the Rex Foundation), Gary Bettman and Al Gore can be Deadheads, any modern businessman/woman can too.
But seriously my trip to the Green Earth Expo in Orlando was a bit strange. First it was the first booth that i’ve worked at a show since AutoFact 1986. Second it was the first booth/show that was for my own company that i arranged myself. Finally i was heading to alternative energy, sustainable business show it turned out to be more alternative lifestyle and products with a large minority of green energy and recycled products exhibitors. So it wasn’t quite the trip i was thinking it would be.
The event was at the Orange County Convention Center (WARNING - The center’s internet service provider, tells you that their $1000 wireless service isn’t really as reliable as their $1500 service. They don’t tell you they sell a $24 a day wireless, that seems to work fine) which is very large place with a lot of one way roads and driveways. The driving was quite annoying until the second day of driving there. This was my first trip to Orlando as an adult and while i hate paying 2, 75 cent tolls to get from the airport to the tourist area, it was a good experience aside from the driveways.
Now, back to the show.
I’m not against alternative lifestyles and other movements that seek to change people’s behavior. I’m not against hippies either. I’m just not sure we’re going to make much of an impact on the folks who drive SUVs, Fly around the world for fun or business and run their A/C full out any day it hits 75, by linking green with alternative lifestyle. Hell, i’m a guy who meet’s 2 of the 3 criteria above, i think i have a more typical american lifestyle than the alternate sorts. I want to save the world, i try to reduce my usage, but i like to have fun and live well too. I’m in favor of sustainability, not against consumerism and that’s where I think linking alternative living with alternative/green technologies doesn’t work at attracting the vast majority of the Americans that need to be engaged.
Now i don’t want this to sound like an attack at Green Earth Expo, it’s not. My friend went to a show in Chicago, that same weekend and had the same observation. Today i was meeting in Toronto (i’m happy to be able to take a train there) and my counterpart was telling me something similar about some shows he’s been to. I guess in short i’m saying the ‘business’ of fighting global warming should focused on environmentally friendly products not on ways to adapt your life to a world with less. While there is plenty of room for both movements, they don’t seem well matched to share a show.
It is the first of a series of “A Little Green Book” titles. The second title, A Little Green Book of Organic Gardening Tips. is also available at lulu, until our first big printing run is available.
We have several more titles in the works. I’m hoping to make it something that can become sustaining to both myself and our authors. We’re looking to bring bloggers to print, on green focused “reference” books.
Well I’m off to my first “green” industry conference, this one in particular focuses on the carbon trading (carbon offset) markets and the industry that is building around. As CEO of www.4Offsets.com I’ll be attending sessions focusing on the offset industry. The “Carbon Forum America” will take place in San Francisco Feb. 26 and 27th, we are proud to be a sponsor.
A friend turned me on to the most unique feature on the web: 1000’s of recordings of Grateful Dead shows. These are not off a music download service or some sort of internet radio station, they’re right at www.archive.org. So i’ve been listening to concerts for the last week or so.
Recently I was looking around for some music from Blanche, a band featuring my cousin and her husband Dan Miller. Take a listen, they have a pretty unique sound. They have a few videos on the web, this one is pretty interesting.
I just returned from my annual trip to London and boy are my arms tired. Not because i’ve just flown in, but rather from reaching for my wallet and pulling out what seemed to be pound of Dollars, to pay for everything from a $9.50 subway ride (1 ride any of 3 zones) and a $23 personal pizza and a good price at that, vs what might have cost $12-15 in most US restaruants. It is horribly expensive to live in the center of English history and culture.
Why do i keep going back? Friends, business and for all it’s cost, rude people and silly prices, London is a fun place to visit. The English capital is the place for first time English speaking travellers to stop in Europe, a home away from home, the safe “relatives” on a long journey.
If you’re going for the first time, i’d suggest you put the time in to learn how to use the tube and the trains, it’s both faster and cheaper than any cab.
